Matt Roush on the 2018 Emmy Nominations — What Did & Didn't Surprise?

Too much TV, too few slots for so many shows and stars hoping for Emmy attention.

While the competition is only going to get worse as the amount of content escalates, somehow new contenders did break through in this year’s nominations. (Results will be announced September 17 on NBC.) Some first impressions:

Jeff Daniels as John O'Neill in The Looming Tower. (Photo: JoJo Whilden/Hulu)

Drama

As expected, Game of Thrones(the most nominated show, with 22) and The Handmaid’s Tale(20) dominate the field, with Westworld also claiming 21 nods, leaving little room for others. The Americans scored in four major categories (actor, actress, series, writing) for its final season.